Again and Again
by KyrieFalcon
Summary: Oni and Majora, always on opposite sides, always fighting. Ever wondered what happened to make the Fierce Deity hate her so much? Majora did the unthinkable...AU, deviates like crazy from the canon storyline. Read and Review! Flames welcomed.
1. The Desert

This is my first fanfic...

Okay, so here it is, the fruits of one late night's labour when I had a spell of insomnia.

Please Read and Review; I know everyone has heard that millions of times by now but this time, Kyrie is welcoming flames!! Every type of review shall be appreciated.

This is another attempt at this story; the first version annoyed me for aesthetic reasons because it was all fluffy romance and no plotline.

Majora is female and kind of human here for story development reasons. I don't know if she has a gender in the games.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda, Link, the Fierce Deity, Majora, Navi, Ganondorf, or any of those kick-ass characters. You can tell because the world is not being destroyed by said Fierce Deity right now, which I would infinitely prefer to his nonexistence._

This is AU, with no regard for the canon storyline.

--

Oni, known now as the Fierce Deity, stood on the edge of Termina and looked upon the destruction he had wreaked across the land.

In the distance he could see Majora's dim form within the dust storm heading towards him. Shadows laughed and coiled inside, writhing with impatience to see his blood spilled on the dry rock beneath his feet. They promised him a long, slow death at the hands of their owner and the frenzied dance of battle. War. The mindless music that he, in all of the Goddesses' creation, was best at dancing to.

He allowed himself a quiet smile, something he had not done in centuries of battle until now. Only one person had ever managed to make him laugh once, alone together, when peace had lain over the land; he had been happy for a time with his cursed bloodlust forgotten.

Oni brushed the thought away. Those times were dead and gone, along with his affection.

He would die in this war, but he would take Majora with him.

--

Majora was still wounded from their last encounter, when she had let down her guard for a moment during the blaze of magic pounding down on her shields and Oni had lunged in, slashing her side with that shadow weapon, the Beam Sword. She resented him for that, and many other things. Jealousy. The burning envy she had felt as he gained more and more of _her_ Termina. Lots of hate. That well would never run dry.

And, after all this while, a tiny trace of love. She had never stopped loving him, and he had abandoned her. He had left her. Majora and Oni, once lovers, now enemies who were destroying her beautiful land for the sake of each other.

Brooding, she looked darkly up through her spiky yellow hair at the lone figure standing on the edge of the cliff. She felt both hate and a slight pang of regret at the sight. He was alone. She should be by his side, fighting with him instead of against him.

Tall-he must have been just about seven feet; lean, not bulky; standing with an air of fierce defiance and pride, every line of his body showing nothing but confidence and determination. The sword, he held easily at his side, holding the massive weapon as if it were a child's toy. Long white hair whipped around his narrow war-painted face in the silent wind. Just as she remembered.

She was getting close, now; she dismissed the storm and walked alone in the dust towards the Fierce Deity.

It was to the death, this time.

--

The figure in the far distance limped slightly, drawing painfully closer to the Fierce Deity and his sword. Closer to death, and closer to the only person she had loved.

He had…cared for her? Oni had never felt it until then, when the woman with bright green eyes and purple skin had danced into his life with her beautiful laugh and her smile. He had felt protective of her. He had wanted her to be safe. Looking at her now, slowly walking towards him with that agonizing slash in her side, slender, proud, he felt nothing but burning hate. Majora had helped him find control over himself because she had loved him, then proceeded to undo what she had done. She had destroyed him from the inside as revenge for leaving her so long ago. Part of him-a small part that he usually suppressed-wanted to scream in agony.

He had to kill her. The world depended on who won this battle.

Oni closed his eyes, feeling self contempt. Pity was not allowed for the Fierce Deity.

Neither was love.

--

So that's the first chapter I've ever written. Hope you liked it. Credit goes to my little brother, SacredFalcon. He writes StarCraft fanfiction and occasionally critiques my work. We're a team.

Kyrie: So what did you think?

SacredFalcon: sob That was horrible! I'll never be the same again!

Kyrie: Thank you.

SacredFalcon: I hate romance.

Kyrie: Hey, LoZ over StarCraft!! At least there are likeable characters!!


	2. Stalemate

The Second Chapter

The Second Chapter! Kyrie worked long and hard on this, so when you read please review too.

I think my chapters are a little short compared to the average of 1500 words. If you'd like them to be longer, just REVIEW and say so!

Flames welcomed as always. Thanks to my only reviewer, pyromaniacalemo, who made my day.

--

They were face to face. Oni was slightly bent over, eyes closed, seeking calm from the Triforce within him. The center triangle, the dark and empty space.

Why did they have to kill each other?

Because Majora was created with part of the Triforce sealed inside her, and it belonged to the Fierce Deity. He _was_ the Triforce.

With that part in her hands-about a third, the world was suffering. Yet she wanted to use the power within her towards her own ends. Namely, ownership of Termina.

And she had destroyed everything he had lived for. Taken away everything he had loved.

So she had to die.

Oni opened his eyes. They were burning with white fire inside, his power thirsting to be unleashed. He didn't seem to see her standing in front of him; he was trying to master himself.

It would be so easy to just finish him right now, she thought. Her mind brushed the part of the Triforce inside her. It was tempting; she found herself gathering in the energy needed…

The Fierce Deity suddenly blinked and focused on her, straightening to his full height. His irisless eyes met her bright green ones for one moment, each fighting their own internal struggle as both love and hate conflicted in their eyes-

And they were moving in a blur, fire swirling around them and wind howling across the ground as they both spun lightning fast to meet the other's attack. Majora was too fast for Oni, the sword whistling through dusty air as she did a backflip over his head, trying to find a place for her two poisoned knives to sink through the armor. Blue fire licked hungrily against her shields; it was met by an eerie green mist that curled around Oni, choking him until he slashed with the Beam Sword and brilliant white fire lanced through the still night.

The fever of battle thrilled both of them, heightening their reactions…the Fierce Deity fought with a skill learned from long experience, while Majora was new to this deadly game, but quicker. Yet she had one disadvantage that he didn't. She was afraid, something that Oni had obviously never felt.

He was dangerous.

An opening formed as Majora managed to escape the shaking ground trying to swallow her alive. The sword deftly wove under the fire barrier around her and she whipped her head up and only just met it with a single blade… Knife and double helix met for an instant; fire and wind and water still battering away at their defenses; there was a huge, soundless concussion and they were both blown away. Majora jumped up first, searching for the knife. She found the charred hilt broken in half, with the blade melted into a useless piece of junk. Frustrated, she flipped neatly out of the way as the sword blazed through the recently vacated space and threw the piece of metal as hard as she could at the Fierce Deity. It hit him on the shoulder and for a second the raging fire everywhere stopped, leaving him vulnerable-

She darted soundlessly up behind him and held the remaining knife up to his unprotected throat.

"I win."

He laughed hollowly, not flinching in the slightest, and she felt something lightly tap her neck. Majora whipped her head around; the Beam Sword rested gently against her spine, humming with suppressed energy. One flick of Oni's wrist and she would die.

They stood like that for a long time, barely moving, until the sun's rays began to touch Termina. Majora's hand was getting really tired; Oni was probably even more uncomfortable, as his arm was twisted backwards to keep the sword at her neck.

The world suddenly grew much brighter, and, looking up, they saw what appeared to be a piece of the sun detach itself and descend directly upon them. Neither moved or made any effort to break away. It was all over.

The light in the sky separated into three as it drifted down, then gained colour and shape as it became more defined. They settled into the dust around Oni and Majora in a triangle, then dimmed to reveal a woman with short spiky red hair, dressed in crimson robes; another with flowing blue locks, clothed in cerulean; and another with long green braids, wearing forest green; the three glowed with an inner brilliance of their own.

Din, Nayru, and Farore.

Farore raised an eyebrow, arms crossed.

"Compromising situation."

Din laughed shortly.

"They've been like that for three hours. We should get this over with, before one of them figures out what we're here for." Her eyes, while laughing, looked sad. Oni wondered what was about to happen…

Nayru stepped forward; her face was unaccountably compassionate.

"According to the Laws of this world, you have become too dangerous to be controlled. You were made as guardians; instead you are destroying Termina and its people."

Farore stepped forwards, musical voice accusing.

"You have killed my people and forced them to live in fear."

Din didn't move from her spot; instead she produced two masks from nowhere. Masks that had no clear features of their own, made of unpainted, nondescript wood that the eye almost slipped over. Still standing in the same place, she held them up, turning to each of her sisters, then to herself. The rough wood glowed briefly as she held it, finally, to the sun.

The two at the center, caught in a stalemate, watched wide-eyed as Din walked closer with the masks held out.

"You have fought long and hard. We cannot destroy you, as you both hold the only Triforce that we all created as one. But you have murdered. Destroyed. And we are partly to blame for that; yet this slaughter was unneeded for the purpose we gave you."

Din laid the masks at their feet and stepped back.

"So you have the right to live; but you shall not touch the land in any way until you are called upon." The masks began to glow softly.

There was a cold tingling at the base of his spine. Fear. He had never felt fear before in his life. Majora had tears running down her face, silent, but she held herself proudly until the very end.

The light intensified. Nothing was visible through the burning white. Oni suddenly realized he couldn't feel anything below his shoulders; he was trapped. He cried out as his worst fear was given life, as he was imprisoned, never to come out again, never to breathe or to live the life that had been given him-

Majora whispered something behind him; he found the strength to twist around. He dropped his sword arm back to his side. It didn't matter anymore.

She let go of the knife and it disappeared somewhere into the blinding light. One single tear brushed his face before-

she was gone.

The light swallowed him and he welcomed the oblivion. Oni drifted, not caring, asleep until the day that he was called again to battle.

So, that's the reworking of the story. Hope you liked it; if you did, please review because I appreciate help; and if you didn't, remember, flames welcomed!

SacredFalcon was drunk on ginger ale this time around, so he'll be unavailable to post his comments. Unless, you want to hear what he has to say…No! Attacking the author is NOT allowed!! Bad editor!! Get off your Game Boy Advance, go out there, and live your life!! Ooh, you evolved your Salamence, let me have a look…


	3. Six Centuries Later

Sorry this took so long

Sorry this took so long. It's been written for a while but I've been BETAing some stories, and haven't had the time to post. But, against all the odds, here it is.

Thanks again to pyromaniacal emo for generally raising my morale, and providing some incentive for updating; and Evil Riggs for the crazy long review…I've tried to keep in mind what you suggested.

I'm currently looking for a BETA. Any offers?

_Disclaimer: Yes, I own Termina. And Hyrule. And Square Enix and Namco and Capcom and even Nintendo. Happy, everyone?!_

"You can be the real bad guy now…"

Link held the Fierce Deity Mask. The child in front of him was wearing Majora's Mask, head cocked to one side and, to all outside appearances, innocent. Tatl fluttered around his head, overly agitated.

"Link, don't put that thing on, it has a REALLY bad reputation for killing people. You don't want to become whatever's inside that thing…"

He ignored her, staring at the mask with fascination. Perfectly crafted, with white, haunting, pupil-less eyes and war paint on a narrow face, it exerted a strange pull over Link.

And it looked just like him. Down to the last detail, it could have been his older brother, twenty years old or so. It sang to him, asked to be put on…

Tatl thumped into his head, shaking Link out of his reverie and almost knocking him out.

"Come on, let's go and talk to the stupid Mask again. I want to be back with my baby brother as soon as possible!"

The child in front of them laughed.

"Will…you play with me?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever." Link was getting tired of hide-and-seek.

"Ookaay!!"

The world flashed white around him, blinding; it was gone as soon as it had come and Link found himself in a dark chamber adjusting to the shadow. Spirals of light curled around the walls and floor in a chaotic pattern, centering on Majora's Mask in front of him.

It was hung innocently on the wall directly in front; the child had disappeared. The four masks that had possessed the Boss entities hung on opposite walls.

Everything was still…for now.

Link took out the Fierce Deity Mask.

The room trembled and suddenly Majora's Mask detached from the wall, floating eerily towards them.

"Link, forget what I said earlier, I don't want to die, so put on the mask and HURRY UP before we get killed!!" Tatl banged repeatedly into his skull and fluttered up towards the ceiling, waiting.

He put on the mask, feeling stupid. What was the point? Majora's Mask was heading towards him, growing tentacles, and he was going to…

Time stopped. His heartbeat suddenly seemed too loud, beating a rhythm on the inside of his head… He doubled over, feeling sick to his stomach. None of his other transformations were like this. Something was wrong…

Link yelled in agony as fire flashed through his veins. Something was changing inside; something inside had broken out and taken control. The pain vanished just as quickly as it had come.

He took a moment to get used to the new sensation, nausea and dizziness attacking him from all directions. There was another presence in his head, fuzzy, as if it was waking from a long sleep. Link should have expected that. It didn't seem to be a danger, so he pushed it to a corner of his mind and focused on his new form.

He was just about seven feet tall; the dark room was vibrant and brightly coloured to his eyes. He was carrying a huge sword as long as he had been as Link; two blades curved into each other and met in a wickedly sharp point to form a glowing double helix.

He was the Fierce Deity.

Majora had remained still during his change; suddenly it seemed to recognize him. It shrieked and shot towards him with the intent to kill.

He yelled, hearing his voice deeper than normal, and tried to dive out of the way. Before he could do that, however, the other consciousness blazed into sudden life, pushing Link into a corner of his mind; control was whipped away from him and he ducked lightning-fast. Majora whizzed harmlessly over his head, keening in frustration.

_She attacks randomly; the best way is to let her come at you and move at the last second_. The voice was quiet and expressionless, empty of everything.

"Wha-?" Mikau and Darmani had always wanted control, tried to take control away when he was taking their forms. They had always failed, though. How was this possible?

"Why were you trapped in a mask?" , he tried tentatively.

_I destroyed Termina. _

Oh.

"Who are you?"

_I was called Oni six centuries ago. _

I was alive.

The sensations of the real world swirled around me, confusing, exhilarating, beyond wonderful after more than half a millennium sealed in a piece of wood sleeping.

And, with renewed life, came the old sensation of bloodlust. To see again the endless suffering and pain and the death that I had wrought; to use the power within to destroy. During my sleep I had seen hazy visions, ones left me to reflect on by the Goddesses, and they had shown what I truly was and what I would do if I fulfilled the darkest wishes of my heart.

They had been beyond nightmares. The child, seeing glimpses of what I had experienced, froze in sickened horror and withdrew to the deepest reaches of my mind. No matter. I would question him later.

And Majora was here.

She was in the only form that the constraints of the mask probably allowed. A rather unaesthetic one, and her power would be extremely limited.

She was also too infuriated to fight properly. Still keening shrilly, she floated randomly around the room trying to get her bearings. Of course, Majora had instantly sensed my presence and now most likely wanted to kill me, which I didn't really want.

So I had no choice.

As she passed over my head for the thousandth time I casually reached up with the sword and she ripped herself open with her own momentum. Falling to the ground, she healed almost instantly, glared balefully at me with painted blank eyes, and grew limbs.

This was child's play. Bored, I made blue fire sprang up around her form, instantly incinerating everything except for the mask itself. She screamed inarticulately and suddenly the world pulsed around us. The mask throbbed in an opposing rhythm; I watched, slightly amused, as she produced more substantial arms and legs. Then a whip.

Majora flicked the whip towards my sword, curling it around the double helix and pulling hard. I let it go; while she staggered back, extremely surprised that she had succeeded so easily, I vanished from where I was and reappeared directly behind her.

The sword came back into my hands without much effort and I thrust it through the belly of her reincarnation.

"I win."

Sooo… how was it? …There's a lonely little purple button down there that's labeled "Submit Review." It wants to be clicked. Go on. No? …Well, thanks for reading anyways.

Kyrie


	4. Memories

Meh

Meh. There are errors in my last chapter. Isn't it funny how you only notice mistakes _after_ you post the chapter in question? I want to flamebroil the entire concept of self-BETAing…

Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed; your comments made my day and gave me a reason to update. I'm pleasantly surprised that this has already been faved so many times…my appreciation and a virtual cookie goes out to all those people.

Buddy asked why the Fierce Deity is ignoring his chance at freedom after six centuries sealed in a mask. The answer is: he's not. Read on and feel Link's pain!

Kyrie

Link watched the fight through the Fierce Deity's eyes, feeling swamped in the infinite memories and thoughts taking place at the same time as the battle. Feelings and images faded in and out of focus; Link, with nothing better to do, started to look though them.

Memories.

A pretty woman with bright green eyes and purple skin, smiling impishly. A garden, sitting beside splashing fountains with the same woman pressed close against him.

Walking away, not looking back, as the woman sobbed behind him, as his heart broke too.

Forging the double helix he held now with pure magic, the essence of light and shadow being fused into each blade…the burning had seared the colour out of his eyes.

Alone on a battlefield, his enemies dead on the wet red grass at his feet and bloodlust burning in his eyes. The lost child coming up, asking plaintively for the parents he had just killed. Remorse destroying him from the inside, guilt tearing him apart as he knew he was powerless to stop himself from killing. Destroying. The same child, tugging on his tunic, pleading with him to stop. Sheathing the sword, his bloodstained hands reaching down to pick up the little girl.

He walked one hundred and forty miles carrying her without stopping, refusing to use his power as a form of self punishment; the child falling asleep curled against his armor. Waking up in the middle of the night beside a campfire because she was whimpering in her sleep, silent tears running down her face as she dreamt herself back to her village's massacre. By him. Holding her, rocking her awkwardly while she slept, learning what it meant to love your children with the fiercest emotion of all.

Wandering for twelve years with the child, then telling her what he had done, that her real parents lay dead because he had not been able to control himself. Even then she had considered him her real parent, telling him so in her quiet but somehow forceful way. The sixteen-year old girl, serious, beautiful, more his child than her human parents'. His daughter. Silky golden hair turned pale by the sun, directly contrasting with his silver; face shaped the same as his; eyes vibrant blue but sad. They looked so alike that he thought he may have unintentionally altered her features to match his. She had been born with the potential for magic, so he had given her the only inheritance he could; part of the power inside him.

He had not killed while she was with him.

Termina had been safe from the Fierce Deity for ten years, ten short years.

But Majora had still hated him for leaving her, wanted to get revenge. She had thought that his only child was his new lover; so one day, his little girl had disappeared. She was only sixteen then.

Oni had pulled apart Termina to find her, and after one whole year without rest, searching tirelessly, he had found nothing. Not even the magical trace that he would have if she had died and released the Triforce back to him.

Agony. Blazing hatred through the emptiness that was once his soul. His heart. It was torn out. But he couldn't die. He was immortal. Tears that would have fallen in any other person stayed within and fueled his next goal…

Again standing alone on a battlefield, emotionless, using his own blood and the blood of his fallen enemies to draw the symbols of revenge on his own face. The ritual he followed seared the markings into his skin as a reminder of what he had lost…and what he had to do.

Then fighting Majora, wounding her more and more each time so that at the end, he could tell her what she had done, then break her heart the way she had broken his twice. Looking into her eyes at the very end knowing that he, with all his thoughts of vindication, would not have been able to strike the death blow against her. His perceived weakness contrasting with the pain of his hate. Then six centuries sealed within a piece of wood, sleeping, waiting until he was reborn again.

_Dreams. The dreams the Goddesses had left him with, different each time, always painful, always ending in destruction. Painful because he knew that they were visions of a too-real future where he had not been sealed away and his power had been allowed to grow. He could never remember them clearly after, but during the dreaming he had seen everything with sickening clarity, wishing that he could truly die… _

_The land lay before him, beautiful and full of life. Oni stood alone in a field, watching all the forces of Termina come united against him. They surrounded him as far as he could see, not daring to come too close but too angry to remember their fear. They demanded him to leave, edging closer and closer, until at the signal from a blown horn the powerful army surged forth- and stopped twenty paces away, unable to come closer._

_Oni smiled and raised his sword, the blue and red markings on his face glowing brilliantly. From far away there was a distant rumble; the sky turned black with clouds flashing with lightning. The people recognized the signs of impending doom and scattered like sheep, panicking. They did not get far; the clouds slammed down from the sky and surrounded the army. Oni danced among them and soon he was alone. Again. _

_Every male of fighting age in Termina was dead, and there was no challenge left in the land. Still crazed with blood and his own hate, he looked over the sea and saw Hyrule…_

_More battles. Death that only he gloried in. The people of that land didn't know what to make of him, didn't see his true power until it was much too late. The life of Hyrule was extinguished like a flickering candle._

_The last battlefield. The bearers of the land's Triforce of Courage and Wisdom stood in front of him, the Hero of Time and the last princess of Hyrule. They looked defiant, desperate, and they held themselves proudly, but he could see the fear in their eyes. _

_He moved forwards to finish them, feeling a strange regret for these two young souls full of hope. Before he could kill them quickly, without pain, the boy flipped over his head without warning and attacked from behind. He was carrying the Master Sword. The girl cast a strong shield over him, faintly blue in the early morning light._

_Then he was fighting, his skill and strength matched with the boy's agility and speed. The blades whirled and they danced, the first time that either had encountered a perfectly equal opponent. For a moment his sword caught on the shield and didn't pass through. Irritated, he sent a negating spell towards the girl, but she threw her own shields up and was only knocked back by its force. _

_So together, they were equal to him. _

_The bloodlust filled him and blinded him to what was truly happening. Slowly the boy was driven back towards the girl, attacks getting less and less as he used up most of his energy trying to defend. Then his shield flickered for a moment as it was burned out and the helix sword flashed white, blinding the sun…_

_When his vision cleared the boy lay still on the grass at his feet, unmoving, and the girl was crumpled to the ground. She looked up with her eyes full of grief. _

"_Hyrule is lost," she whispered. She got up and ran to the boy's side and flung her arms around him, sobbing. He walked silently over to her, curious, and used the sword to tip her chin up so he could look at her face._

"_Are you my child?" he asked. She slowly shook her head, somehow understanding, then moved aside to reveal the boy's still frame. _

_Oni bent down and turned the child's face towards him, seeing the golden hair, the narrow face pale in death, the blue eyes still half-open, the resemblance to himself; and knew what he had done. _

_He picked up the body and turned around to see the girl in his way._

"_Do you have a right to take him?" _

_Silently he knelt down to eye level with the princess, brushed the hair away from his face so that she could see. The girl's expression never flickered as she looked steadily into his eyes and saw the truth there. Perhaps her grief was too great to be pushed aside by shock._

"_His mother. Who… where is she?" He almost didn't want to know, didn't want to accept the terrible thing he had committed…_

_The princess lowered her eyes, a single tear sliding down her face._

"_I'm sorry… Nobody knows. He was raised by the Kokiri."_

"_Who gave him to them?"_

"_Ganondorf."_

Link couldn't remember the last scene clearly-it seemed to be hazy, too full of energy for comprehension. Overwhelmed, he withdrew into a corner of the Deity's mind with the vision of his own death still fresh within him; he focused on the outside world, trying to shake the image out of his head. Then Oni spoke and Link finally noticed that Majora had fallen.

"Majora?" The emotionless voice was hollow, somehow echoing in the silent room. The mask was gone.

In its place lay the crumpled figure of a woman, one hand gripped around the double helix still through her middle.

Cliffhanger!

This chapter commemorates the introduction of my as-yet unnamed Original Character, a character made of win, who may or may not be related to Link in some way. She will be introduced in person in later chapters.

SacredFalcon the editor has proposed that we offer nukes to everyone who reviews. So that's this chapter's incentive. A nuclear bomb. Hope you enjoy your present. :P

Regards, Kyrie


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